An man who killed four people and injured 11 others in a shooting at a grocery store in Central Arkansas last year was sentenced on Monday to life in prison without parole, according to court documents.
The man, Travis Eugene Posey, 45, of New Edinburg, Ark., opened fire at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, Ark., on June 21, 2024, in what the director of the Arkansas State Police said at the time was “a completely random, senseless act.”
Mr. Posey pleaded guilty last month to four counts of capital murder and 11 counts of attempted capital murder, according to court documents. Judge Spencer Singleton of Arkansas’ 13th Judicial Circuit sentenced him on Monday to life without the possibility of parole on each of the capital murder counts, and 20 years on each of the 11 counts of attempted capital murder, or 220 years total.
Mr. Posey’s sentences are to be served consecutively, said Jeff Rogers, the prosecuting attorney for the 13th Judicial District. Mr. Rogers did not offer additional comment on Monday.
The shooting temporarily shuttered the Mad Butcher, the only grocery store in Fordyce, a small town of 3,400 people about 70 miles south of Little Rock, and the town was left reeling from the bloodshed.
The four victims were identified as Shirley Taylor, 62; Callie Weems, 23; Roy Sturgis, 50; and Ellen Shrum, 81. Two law enforcement officers were among the injured.
Before Judge Singleton handed down the sentence on Monday, relatives of the victims took turns addressing Mr. Posey in the courtroom in Camden, Ark., The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported.
“You don’t deserve to be part of our story,” said Hanna Sturgis, whose father, Mr. Sturgis, was among those killed in the shooting, according to The Democrat-Gazette. Mr. Posey did not speak and sat expressionless through much of the hearing, the newspaper reported.
Lawyers listed in court documents as representing Mr. Posey did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday.
Brittney Sullivent, who was among those injured in the shooting, and her husband, Jeromy Sullivent, are suing Mr. Posey for damages to help cover medical care, lost earnings and other expenses because of the shooting, according to a complaint filed in Dallas County, Ark., in August 2024. According to the complaint, Mr. Posey fired shots into Ms. Sullivent’s vehicle, wounding her in the arm and the head and causing damage to the car.
Mr. Posey has not responded to the complaint, according to court documents. In May, lawyers for Ms. Sullivent petitioned the judge for a default judgment against Mr. Posey.
A judge has not ruled on that request.
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